DAVID MOYES' mood fell flatter than one of Billy Butler's pre-match gags, and it was no surprise.

Last week the Everton boss was as angry as he has ever been after a match, livid at seeing his side surrender an easy three points at Reading. He was more sedate this week, but his frustration was still palpable.

Little wonder. As Goodison Park assumed a retro theme, all old-school matchday programmes, pink ECHOs and dubious jokes, Everton appear to have slipped into familiar old habits. There were boos from a small minority at the final whistle here after Norwich slipped away with a point.

And while that may seem a tad strange - Moyes' side are, after all, fifth in the Premier League, ahead of Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool, among others – there is an underlying frustration at Goodison, a fear that having waited eight years to make a strong start to a campaign, the good work is being undone by a series of wasteful afternoons.

This was another to add to the list. Having squandered points at Fulham and Reading in recent weeks, they were at it again here. Sebastien Bassong's 90th-minute equaliser will have felt like a hammer blow to Everton's Champions League hopes.

The sight of Christmas lights at Goodison is usually enough to prompt an upsurge in form, but winter has not been kind to Everton this time around. December's fixtures mean things could get worse before they get better.

There were mitigating circumstances here, to be fair. Moyes' squad was diminished by injury and suspension – they were without Marouane Fellaini, Seamus Coleman, Phil Neville, Victor Anichebe, Darron Gibson and Kevin Mirallas – and, as control slipped away from his side in the second half, his substitutes' bench provided little comfort. Everton's six outfield replacements had a total of four Premier League goals to their name.

Moyes also questioned the decision of referee Mike Jones to award the free kick from which Bassong eventually levelled. Replays showed contact between Leighton Baines and Steve Morison was minimal but, with the Norwich striker meandering away from goal towards half-way, it was needless of Baines to place two hands into his back.

Of more concern to Moyes, in any case, will be his side's issues at both ends of the field.

And in particular the form of two players he will have considered to be key to his side's aspirations this season.

Tim Howard's role in Norwich's equaliser was clear. The Blues 'keeper remained rooted to his goal-line as Javier Garrido's free-kick drifted deep towards the far post. When it was eventually met by Bassong, the Canaries defender was little more than a yard out. Howard, despite his best efforts, could not react in time.

It is becoming a recurring theme with the American this season; his reluctance to leave his line to deal with crossed balls is worrying.

It cost Everton a goal at West Bromwich Albion earlier in the season, and would have cost them the Merseyside derby too had a linesman's flag not wrongly cut Luis Suarez's celebrations short.

Moyes was right to suggest that John Heitinga, who was supposed to be marking Bassong, should share the blame in this instance, but the ball was in the air long enough for his goalkeeper to have made a decisive intervention.

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Howard was making his 195th consecutive Premier League appearance here. It is speculative, of course, but does he suffer from a lack of competition? It is unlikely that Jan Mucha will dislodge him any time soon.

It is known that Everton looked at Jack Butland, the young Birmingham goalkeeper, back in August, and that the England U21 star remains on their radar. It may be that the arrival of a real challenger is what Howard needs, though, of course, Everton are in no position to spend big money on understudies.

Jelavic, meanwhile, endured another below-par afternoon. The Croatian's record this season – five goals in 12 Premier League games – is not particularly poor, but it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that his influence is not what it was. His blistering start to life on Merseyside last season set high standards; that are not being met currently.

He barely had a sight of goal here, with Everton's threat coming via Baines, Leon Osman or the in-form Steven Naismith. The Scot, with three goals in his last three starts, is doing more than most to compensate for Jelavic's dip in form.

It is not just the goals. Jelavic's touch has looked sloppy, his movement jaded. So impressive following his arrival from Rangers back in January, perhaps it is understandable that his form would level out at some point. Fellaini's brilliance, to some extent, has compensated, but without him they needed their talisman. He was nowhere to be seen.

If Everton are serious about challenging for the top four, they need to shake off these bad habits. And they need their bigger players to snap out of their own personal lulls.